Android 5.0 has only been official for about 24 hours now, and already OEMs are lining up to explain their upgrade paths. Yesterday was Motorola, and today Sony is laying its cards on the table. Sony has a lot of cards. The company has confirmed that all its Z series devices will get Android Lollipop. That's a whole mess of phones.

Sony's (non-GPE) upgrades will start in early 2015 with the Xperia Z3 and Xperia Z2 devices, and will continue on from there. I wouldn't be surprised if carrier integration held up a few OTAs, but at least Sony is committed to getting this done.

them Samsung really droped the ball here, I am sure that there is still a lot of S4 users out there.. oh well, I am glad my M7 will be updated

gonsa sba

But it says here they will update the S4.

fcjan

oh you are right, it's on first place.. silly me

Chaturanaga Manchanayake

Samsung will definitely update there Galaxy S4 fosho,

Leif Sikorski

For the latest models, like the M8 and S5, HTC and Samsung are usually at the same pace. The 4.4 update took both about 3 months - at least here in Europe. With the older models like the S4 I'm a bit more sceptical, but we'll see.

Good_Ole_Pinocchio

OF course they're going to update it.

DonEmu

Samsung would most likely update S4 but not update the Touchwiz on it so that it still lacks something the S5 doesn't.

left behind

is there any ray of hope for my old Optimus G?

Dustin Mingo

That's the base for the Nexus 4. LG will probably abandon you for sure, but AOSP ROMs will definitely have your back.

forever left behind

but the Nexus 4 is officially getting Android Lollipop right? why would not they upgrade the G also, LG is really terrible on software support.

Ryan Gabbard

LG...that's why. Unfortunately they don't have the greatest record with updating devices.

Franco Rossel

Because the Nexus 4 is mantained by Google, not LG. Google has no responsability towards the G.

clinis

They probably will update Z to 5.0 just like they did with U to 4.0.4. It's their final update and with a decrease in performance

NBMTX

I think the Z getting Kit Kat would be closer to the U getting ICS. Getting L is surprising to me because I remember the Advance got JB but the U and Sola didn't, despite having similar specs. My U (first Android device) had a messed display and got approved for RMA under warranty, I was supposed to get instructions on what or where to send it but that never happened... at the time I think I already had a Nexus 4 or something so now it's just a broken phone lying around.

Tushar Khubani

I guess all big manufacturers like sony,samsung,htc would do this as many users are concerned about the updates that the manufacturer provides and its quality. M not sure about lg, lg is the crappiest on delivering updates and their updates suck to the core, lg like apple and their old devices slow down after updates...anyways thats my point of view :)

hkklife

I am tempted to buy a used Tablet Z just so my toddler can watch videos on it and not worry about dropping it in the bathtub or spilling a drink on it. Nice move, Sony! Looks like jettisoning the VAIO division is already paying dividends for tablet and phone support!

Matt Pankey

You can bet the T-Mobile Xperia Z will never see 5.0. It never got. 4.4.

brararsh

Early 2015? I hope some day All OEMs release update on the same day after few days of announcement. This is the only thing I like with Apple.

vyktorsouza

+1, what was those 2 months with a preview for then? nothing changed it seems

Scott Russ

Then we get another preview on Friday, it's absolutely baffling.

Marcel Ulbrich

2 months? Make that 4. End of June till end of October.

Mark

App developers. OEMs have always had early access via the PDK.

Dario · 753 a.C. .

i didn't get that point. oem have preview to start developing their L version? if google releases other previews do they have to re start developing thier version again ex novo?

are they, now, already developing their version? or do they wait for the final version to start?

Nathan Walters

It wouldn't make sense to start building a new version before the final code is released, as Google can still make breaking changes in the preview build.

Dario · 753 a.C. .

ok thank you as i thought.... so what are they doing now about L? nothing?

Nathan Walters

Who are you referring to with "they"?

Dario · 753 a.C. .

motorola, samsung, lg sony and others.

Nathan Walters

Right now, they're probably working on new designs for Material, but I doubt they've started pulling L components into their branch of Android.

Dario · 753 a.C. .

ok thank you :)

Leif Sikorski

It was mainly for the developer. ART, the new Camera API - for them it made just sense.

ChrisM40

Apple dont do that though, there is often a delay of a few weeks for some devices and regions. It can be a month or more.

vyktorsouza

weeks are still way better than months, though

ChrisM40

There is one huge difference of course. On an OEM phone you would be hard pressed to know what the base OS actually was, because of the custom UI. The OEMs apps, and G Apps update far more frequently than anything on iOS. For them to get new core apps they need an OS update, Android doesn't need that.

Having a phone on JB doesnt really limit you to the new stuff the way staying on iOS7 does.

mark

Indeed - one could point out that say Samsung phones get the latest version of TouchWiz weeks after a new TouchWiz release. Quibbling over what the underlying Android version number is is about as relevant as asking what the Linux version number is, or whether it supports the latest version of OpenGL or any number of other components.

Of course, it's a bad thing if updated components take longer to reach users. But there's no evidence that Apple get new features to users quicker - the evidence says the contrary.

Martin

You are insane.. Everyone gets the updates pretty much the same hour..

ChrisM40

In theory, doesnt work like that. I know many that waited for a long time before they dot it, and complaints are quite common on Apple fan sites too..

Leif Sikorski

Between the announcement and early builds and the final version is still quite some time - same on Android. The Nexus users are usually the ones who have to deal with the last bugs. On a Nexus the first 1-2 updates always felt like a final beta test.

Martin

Nothing close to Android.. You are talking bs right now.. We (android users) only can dream Google to start doing the same.

Cory S

It isn't Apples to Apples. A lot of the updates are in the Google Services Framework which rolls out to everything right away. Including tons of the apps that have been off loaded to the play store...meaning some things get updated even faster than Apple devices.

DemandTrialByCombat

Couldn't have said it better and Apple iOS updates are less significant than even Play Services Updates which updates every 6 weeks on 1+ billion devices at the same time

ash

Not same time. It rolls out in phases

Martin

If Google finally grow balls and tells all OEMs, F*ck you from now NO SKINS! Only stock android.. If you want Touchwiz or all other BS, release it as a Launcher in the play store! This way, everyone will get the update pretty much at the same time! :-)))

Dario · 753 a.C. .

unfortunately oem want to personalize their phones and i don't think google can do a thing like that without negative consequences

Martin

I get it, but this is the only way for really fast updates.. Oems like Samsung with 100000000 devices, can update only the latest flagships.. With stock it will be so much easier.. I know not everyone will love it, but.. It is what it is... There always will be negative side.. :-)

G

Then why fucking Android should be Open Source then ? I don't specially agree with the philosophy of touchwiz/sense and the others, but I would totally disagree if Google impose their "stock" android.

Leif Sikorski

People who want this can buy a Nexus or Moto. The beauty of Android is the diversity.

didibus

That's terrible, in fact, I believe it might be there biggest mistake with Wear and TV and Auto if they do this.

What Google could do if they wanted to, is make APIs for more things, so that customization don't require as much direct source code change, but can instead be done on top of stock.

CyberPunk

Be together. Not the same.

Dan Andersen

25% of Android users on KitKat = 250 Million+ devices (since they have 1 Billion 30 day active users). I'snt that close to the the entire install base of iPhones? Google seems to be doing something right.

The number of devices Apple releases updates for is FAR less than the number of devices that run Android. It is natural that Apple will always be in the lead here.

DemandTrialByCombat

Apple iOS updates are less significant than even Play Services updates which gets updates every 6 weeks on 1+ billion devices at the same time

Leif Sikorski

I think 2-3 months are fine. Usually every major Android version (same on other systems like iOS) had some serious bugs in the x.0 and x.1 version. I highly prefer to wait 2-3 months and let the early adopter Nexus user find the bugs instead of having a messed up system that I need to downgrade.

Tushar Khubani

Only if you dont want to.start a debate over here, try an updated ios device thats as old as the nexus 4 and come back here and report if it doesn't lag,freeze,slows down.

mark

26 days after what? The problem is that the "announcement date" is arbitrary. Apple don't finish the OS, and then have it on all their devices magically - rather there will be a period of testing, and only after it's ready will they do the updates.

Google OTOH do announce, and then other companies have to do the testing. So you're comparing the time from completely different dates.

Things are better now that beta versions have been available, but the final version still isn't available until now. The only way Google could achieve this is if rather than releasing the final version straight away, they did it like Microsoft and had an RTM version, which was the final version, but have the official launch date later.

That might be nicer so that users don't get excited then have to wait. But you wouldn't magically get your updates any sooner. It's a purely cosmetic change to get rid of this criticism that is nonsense in the first place.

The real question is, who gets *features* first? Sorry, I don't care that IOS users get an arbitrary version of IOS so many days after an arbitrary date, when I've had the new features 2 years or more earlier in Android.

Another problem is that Apple disable new features for older phones - so it's not true that all these phones are getting the latest IOS, it's just a lie to claim they're running the latest version number. In Android land, older phones won't get an OS update, but they still get some of the new features via Google Play updates.

The comparison is even more nonsense when you consider that, like it or not, most phones don't run stock Android. You might as well claim that Android is rubbish because when a new Linux kernel is released, it takes time for it to be integrated into a new version of Android.

vyktorsouza

early 2015 though, hopefully on january like HTC

cooldude5500

That extra comma after the Xperia Z2 Tablet is really annoying me... Great job by Sony though

Fatal1ty_93_RUS

shh, it just doesn't have the Tablet Z3 yet in there

NBMTX

2015? That's why I went with the Moto X vs a Z2/Z3/Z3c, well that and it also has a great design and UX

joseph carmine nero

Nice surprise,i thought they would dump Z.although i have Z2 myself

Arun Iyer

If all manufactures go in the direction Sony and Moto are going with their updates then we are going to see tremendous growth in the share of devices running Lollipop very soon after its release. That will show them folks running about saying "fragmentation fragmentation"

ONLY

Updating a 1.5 year old phone! WOWW SUNY IS BEST

Guest

2 by the time it actually gets updated actually, Xperia Z was Announced on 2013, January
edit: wait, Suny?

Grayson

There are a lot of counterfeits out there.

Fatal1ty_93_RUS

HOLY SHIT!

THIS is how you provide support! Sony is now officially better than everybody else

Adam Dominiak

what about HTC? One M7 will get 5.0 in 90 days from yesterday :)

Fatal1ty_93_RUS

Lol, how many devices in HTC going to update for sure? 2

How many devices is Sony going to update? 15

fcjan

HTC One M7, M7 Mini, M7 Max, M8, M8 Mini, E8, Desire 820, Desire EYE, Buterfly 2 (most likely Buterfly).. and maybe some more, but these for sure.. also, HTC will release updates for M7 and M8 first, then later for the rest.. do you think that Sony will update all those phones the same time? lolno

Fatal1ty_93_RUS

Oh come on, are you really THAT naive? Okay, the M7 and M8 family I might believe, but the rest? Do you actually think HYC is gonna give a crap about Desire 820 or the Butterfly and give them Lollipop?

So Sony is still going to update more devices that HTC (15 vs 5), and I doubt JTC is going to roll out the updates in a timely manner either PLUS it clearly states in the article how Sony is gonna start in early 2015 and go through updating as the time goes on

NBMTX

didn't the Desire 820 come out last month or something?... do you really think they're not going to update a device that came out 3 months after the L Preview and only a month before full release? I believe they have an 18-mo support pledge so I'd just use that for reference for what will and won't with an exception for the M7 since it's a relevant flagship.

Fatal1ty_93_RUS

HTC never cared about the Desire line, it's the most basic and non-important lineup for the company. This will not be an exception to that rule. And don't think that if a device came out before a preview or an actual release dropped then it's a 100% guarantee of getting an update. It never was. It's not. And it will never be.

NBMTX

The One M7 is the exception as it's over 18 months old, at 19mo I think. Against your words HTC would have to MAKE an exception to their rule(or "pledge") for the Desire 820 to not include it.
Though I don't particularly care, since I'm not affected anyway... and I'm not sure what benefit lies in wait for those who go against HTC and those who own such devices, but I imagine it's nothing too fantastic.

Joe

If there is any reason to update the desire is that it can run 64 bit android l. But I'll believe it when I see it - HTC has flipped flopped in the past.

fcjan

geez.. I don't have time or will to argue with some Russian kid who hates HTC and thinks it's smartest in the world.. just enjoy, I am done

chimchimcheroo

In 90 days of receiving the final code from Google. Google still have not released the final code.

Xperia SP. They kept saying '4.4.4 Under Investigation' until they sold all the devices flocking in the market. Once they were sure they sold many Xperia SP's, they dropped support. Xperia SP was released in August 2013, Kitkat was released in december. Sony is a total cunt!

almousawi

But they said "under investigation". As for me I'll know immediately if an OEM says under testing or something like that it means it'll not come. This is different, however. They said they'll update the devices without the testing or investigation shit.

Joris Griffioen

Or, you know, they investigated it and deemed it undoable. (in whatever way, technically or financially)

frewquinnn

still not better than motorola... X, G and E will get mush faster than Z

fcjan

that is because Motora phones are almost pure stock android, so it's not so hard for Motorola to update them that fast. logic

frewquinnn

I know that. I was replying to this comment "Sony is now officially better than everybody else" Why is not the question here when is the question

Fatal1ty_93_RUS

So your argument is automatically invalid

1) Motorola has less devices to update - X, X 2014, G, G 2014 and E. That's five devices
2) Motorola uses pretty much a Nexus firmware with its own services - zero effort into actually releasing the updates
3) Sony has planned to update three times more devices in its lineup from 2012 up until this day
4) Sony alters AOSP in its own flavor, with its own apps, with its own skin, AND it has to upgrade devices that are older than what Moto has, including hardware and maybe even Android version

frewquinnn

why does any of that matter??? Moto is updating faster so they are the best now. they say early 2015 but I bet it would be around march.. sony is notorious for doing that

vyktorsouza

no one's talking about the fact that the Xperia Z will be 2 yo by the time it gets the update?
NEAT, things ARE changing it seems, i wonder if it was an agreement with Google or something

chimchimcheroo

I see Google's hand behind this; they're probably tired of fragmentation as much as anyone else.

jayden

how about LG :(

Ali

Just because they made it official doesn't mean they promise the update. They can change their minds at any time.

nadav

They will update the devices.

Medhi

Just as they updated the Xperia SP to KitKat!

jlmcr87

Congratulations to Xperia M, T etc. for not receiving Lollipop. Next time buy another brand.

Fatal1ty_93_RUS

Midrangers, dude. Xperia M was done at 4.3

Gran PC

What about T? I'm pretty sure that was a flagship

Wolf0491

Isn't the T over two years old now?

Faris Fitri

The T is about as old as the Galaxy S3,and iinm it's well over two years old now.

Gran PC

I didn't deny it's old. I just said the T was not a midranger.

Didn't the S3 receive an official 4.4 update?

dxppxd

No, only the US variant. Most S3, the international model, didn't get sht.

It's not a bad thing though, since 4.4 broke sd card usage in most cases (unless you had root).

Fatal1ty_93_RUS

Z is the new T

Juan M. Triana

Android L raw image support and Sony cameras.... This is going to be pretty interesting

frewquinnn

The whole reason its coming early is because google shared Android code to sony(and other Google play edition OEM) early. Thanks to Google for improving it. Also with preview build google no longer have to keep the OS a secret

Spence1115

Wow, Sony has changed. Supporting even the Xperia Z, nicely done! That means my Z1 will get 5 without having to flash a custom ROM.

AbbyZFresh

In 2017 of course.

Rob Johnson

My fellow SP owners are going to be so pissed lol

jerflash

this is nice...i have a z3c coming soon...this is a big deal for weather i keep it or go back to my nexus 5

Rajat

And that's why I like Sony.... 😊😊

Deeco

Lollipop is a game changer! FTW!

sagisarius

Well, I'm not digging the Nexus Whale, so I think Sony just convinced me to buy a Z3 Compact.

(Yes wireless carriers and other manufacturers, that's all it takes, give me quick updates when making a good product, and you have my attention)

lee jun-hoe

Thumbs up for Sony!

PiLoT .

See theyve done it again. theyve left out everyone else. the literally wont be told what theyll get until they dont get it

Rajesh Koothrappali

Y U give no love to the Xperia SP Sony?

VicRooLoo

Want to be excited except I know my Z1S won't get the update WELL into 2015.

And it might break root too.

Craig M

As a Z Ultra GPe owner, I'm very excited to hear this news.

Maxwell McQuirter

While I appreciate Sony supporting their devices properly, this timeline has confirmed my next phone will be the Nexus 6 (unless there is an GPE Xperia Z3 in the works and I doubt it). I'd rather get a bigger screen and near instant updates than wait an unspecified number of months and be stuck on an older software version. 6 inch phone, here I come....